Surface models and gradually peeled volume model to explore hand structures.

This study was intended to confirm whether simultaneous examination of surface and volume models contributes to learning of hand structures. Outlines of the skin, muscles, and bones of the right hand were traced in sectioned images of a male cadaver to create surface models of the structures. After the outlines were filled with selected colors, the color-filled sectioned images were stacked to produce a volume model of the hand, from which the skin was gradually peeled. The surface models provided locational orientation of the hand structures such as extrinsic and intrinsic hand muscles, while the peeled volume model revealed the depth of the individual hand structures. In addition, the characteristic appearances of the radial artery and the wrist joint were confirmed. The exploration of the volume model accompanied by equivalent surface models is synergistically helpful for understanding the morphological properties of hand structures.